American consumers have a wide range of high-tech products available for their entertainment. As has been shown numerous times, they are ever eager for increasingly sophisticated technological advancements. However, over the years the television has remained a primary staple for consumer entertainment.
While televisions have been widely available for decades they have evolved from very heavy, large consoles having small black-and-white screens, to larger, lightweight high-tech products having flat, thin screens with high density color elements and high tech operations. Unlike in the past, modern televisions are often hung on walls. While a wall mount can be very convenient, even the highest tech television still requires power cords and antenna (cable) connections. Such power cords and cable connections are often distracting and unsightly and mounting a television on a wall simply compounds those issues. Furthermore, televisions traditionally have been located as part of an “entertainment center,” a spatial location where not only a television but DVD players, Blue-ray players, satellite receivers, cable boxes, gaming consoles, stereos systems and other entertainment devices are located and interconnected. But, since flat screen televisions are often wall mounted the traditional entertainment centers become less purposeful.
As with televisions, a major problem with most high-tech products is that usually each requires at least its own power cord and possibly associated wires such as speaker wires as well as a shelf. This expansion of devices, wires, power cords, and shelves can be very unattractive, exposing wires and cables which can become trip and fire hazards. In addition the number of required power outlets can easily exceed those available and the required shelving can be very expensive. Then there is the problem of simply routing power and signal cables.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a home entertainment shelving system which readily mounts flat screen televisions on walls while also supporting associated electronic devices such as DVD players, Blu-Ray™ players, satellite receivers, cable boxes, gaming consoles, stereos systems near the television. Preferably such a shelving system would support associated electronic devices immediately below or at least in the vicinity of the television, would save valuable floor space, would keep the resulting entertainment system looking neat and orderly, and would be highly configurable to enable a range of different configurations. Preferably such a shelving system would enable supporting shelves at different heights while allowing a flat screen television to be attached to wall studs to provide secure mounting. Even more preferably the shelving system would enable mounting many different makes and models of televisions while also enabling adjustable viewing angle. In practice it would be useful to provide illumination for the various devices on the shelves, it would be easy to use, would incorporate electrical power distribution using power outlets, and would hide the various signal and power wires of the devices of the entertainment center.